


I Left My Heart at the Airport

by malecswedlock



Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types
Genre: Airports, Alternate Universe - Celebrity, Alternate Universe - Human, F/F, Fluff, Meet-Cute, More Fluff, Pls don´t hate Alec, They´re soulmates, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-29
Updated: 2019-08-29
Packaged: 2020-09-29 16:02:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,646
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20438717
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/malecswedlock/pseuds/malecswedlock
Summary: “People who meet in airports are seventy-two percent more likely to fall for each other than people who meet anywhere else.”― Jennifer E. Smith, The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight





	I Left My Heart at the Airport

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jeanjknox](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jeanjknox/gifts).

> Hello, friends! I present to you a very fluffy Heline story. No angst, no tears, no suffering. Just fluff, I hope you enjoy :)  
Big thank you to Zee for being my beta xx
> 
> P.S. Happy Birthday, Malee!

_ **December** _

As soon as Aline pulled her backpack off the security belt, her phone buzzed. 

“Alec, hi!” She answered, moving toward the waiting area. “What a coincidence, I’ve just passed the security check and was going to call you.”

“You’re at the airport? Already? I thought your flight wasn’t before five.”

Aline looked at her watch. It was a little past three. “I thought that if I didn’t leave earlier, my agent would definitely find another show for me to go to or another producer for me to meet. It was hard enough to get the weekend off now that we’ve just finished shooting the movie. I’m not letting anyone make me miss my best friend’s wedding.” 

She heard Alec let out a small laugh on the other side. “I love your dedication.”

Aline lay her eyes on an empty seat at the end of the hallway and rushed towards it. “And I love _ you _. Besides, if I don’t arrive at least three hours in advance, I start freaking out.” 

“I get it,” Alec replied. “So what are you going to do with all this free time?”

Aline dropped her backpack on the floor near the seat as soon as she reached it and sat down next to a girl who was reading a book. “I have plenty of things to do here. Have some coffee. Read the new script. Sleep. Maybe have the romance of a lifetime.” 

She noticed her neighbor look up from the book and grin. 

“Well, that’s quite the plan. Update me on the romance?”

Aline chuckled. “I just said I had a new script and you’re interested in the romance?”

“I’m a writer, what do you want? Besides, you should know to put information in the right order. The most important stuff comes at the end to keep the partner interested.”

“Oh, so it’s my fault now, huh?” Aline teased. “I see how it is, mister.” 

Alec laughed again. “Okay, guilty, I’m a hopeless romantic. But you’ll definitely tell us all about your new project when you arrive, right?”

“I’m not allowed to talk about the details yet, but I’ll think about it. Though I will definitely tell your boyfriend about what an unsupportive friend you are.”

“You meant _ fiancé _,” Alec practically sang the word. Aline heard someone else’s laughter in the background. 

“You two are awful,” she said with a giggle. “And so perfect for each other. Don’t get married before I arrive!” 

“Well, then come faster,” Magnus cut in. “We’ll be waiting for you with a banner.”

“Oh, a real star treatment!” 

There was a little fuss at the end of the line before Alec took over the phone again. “Call us before you take off?” 

“Yeah.”

“And don’t forget to update me on the romance!” He said and hung up before Aline could retort with a witty comment. 

She just grinned at her phone and looked around. She hadn’t noticed it when she entered the area, but the hall was packed with people. They occupied all the benches, some of them sat on their bags, others filled the cafes all around. Aline sneaked a peek at the girl with the book. Whenever she saw a person reading a book in a public place, she couldn’t help but go out of her way to find out the title, even if she didn’t know it or wasn’t interested in reading it. The girl’s long hair was making it hard to read the title at the top of the page, but Aline managed to catch a glimpse of a paragraph before the girl turned the page. 

_ Everything I have at this moment of my life has happened on accident, from that scholarship to my recent promotion and me getting the apartment; at this point I am ready to accept that my whole life has turned out to be one huge lucky accident and to see where it takes me without asking questions. However, there’s one thing I’m sure of: two souls don’t find each other by simple accident _.

She remembered that passage perfectly because she was there when it was written. She remembered how she and Alec had this huge discussion about whether fate existed or whether everything happening to us was of our own making. It was a long discussion, interrupted by a couple of phone calls and a coffee break but at the end they came to the conclusion that whether fate or not, the people we meet during our lifetime impact our lives in certain ways. Alec said he would put it in the book that he was writing at the time, and so he did. Aline knew the book was selling relatively well, she had her own signed copy, she knew it existed. Still, it was unusual seeing a stranger read a book that you once saw as a draft on your friend’s computer. She wanted to ask the girl whether she was enjoying the book, but stopped herself in time to realize it would be too much. Aline made a note to herself to tell Alec about it when she arrived. 

The girl must have noticed her prying because she looked up briefly, urging Aline to look the other way. She didn’t always like it herself when people stared at her when she was doing some mundane things, like reading or eating out with friends, but it kind of came with being a TV star. She decided to focus on the new script instead and let the girl read in peace. 

Focusing on her character’s lines turned out to be more difficult than she’d thought. Soon she noticed that the girl kept stealing glances at her from time to time. _ Great _ , she thought, _ she recognized me _. At first Aline was genuinely trying not to pay attention to it, like she often did when she caught people staring at her, but soon it became unbearable.

“Is something wrong?” She said finally, looking away from the script and turning to the girl right at the exact moment when she was looking. This was the first time she could see her face. She looked taken aback, a slightly embarrassed smile on her face. Aline was proud of herself for making her feel embarrassed. That’s what you got for staring at people when they tried to read their script in peace. 

“Oh, I’m sorry,” the girl said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. 

Aline noted in her subconscious that her ears were a little pointy, like those of an elf or a fairy, which she found really cute. She felt a smile creeping on her face, but stopped herself before she could ruin everything and let the girl get away with the staring. 

“I don’t mean to be rude, but...” she continued, a little nervous. 

_ Oh, she wants an autograph. Or a picture. Or both _. 

“Okay, let’s get it over with,” Aline said as calmly as she could. “Do you have a pen?”

“What?” 

Clearly she was still in shock. Sometimes people did that when they met Aline. It was one thing to imagine meeting a celebrity, but things would go completely differently when you actually met one. Aline had experienced it firsthand when she was only beginning her career and got cast in episodic scenes with the actors she’d only seen on the screen of her laptop before. She would be all sorts of embarrassing around them before pulling herself together like the professional that she was and afterwards she’d call Alec and they would freak out together. So she totally felt for the girl and decided to be more friendly, which wasn’t all that hard. 

“Something I could write with?” She smiled. 

The girls confused expression changed. “Oh, that!” 

Aline nodded in encouragement. _ Okay, wasn’t that hard. _

“Uhm, no, sorry, I… I didn’t mean to… I didn’t want to… I mean I don’t want to be rude or anything,” the girl’s eyes started darting about as she was getting more nervous. “I didn’t mean to ask for an autograph, sorry.” 

“Oh,” Aline said. _ Well, that’s definitely the most embarrassing thing that’s happened to me today _. “So what did you want then?”

“There’s…” she lifted a finger to her mouth. “Something… I think you’ve got chocolate in the corner of your mouth.”

_ No, scratch that _ , Aline thought, _ that’s the most embarrassing thing _. 

“Sorry,” her neighbour continued, she spoke fast, almost melting the words together. “I didn’t want to be annoying or creepy, I just thought if I had chocolate on my face, I’d be really embarrassed and I would definitely want someone to tell me so I didn’t have to look stupid during the entire flight and have people look at me thinking what a slob, she has chocolate on her face! I didn’t want you to feel embarrassed and find out when you arrived and your friend told you about it, so yeah. But I’m just really self conscious and I’m sure you’re fine, I just thought you should know,” she added, laughing nervously. “Okay, I’ll shut up now. Thanks for listening. I’m sorry again for, you know, staring.” The girl smiled and turned back to her book.

Aline was taken aback a little bit, trying to process everything. She reached for a pocket mirror in her backpack and looked at herself. There was indeed a chocolate spot in the corner of her mouth. That she’d been walking all day with. Alec would definitely have fun with this story when she told him. She wiped the chocolate off and looked at the girl again, who was now making her best effort to concentrate on the book, but her burning ears made it obvious that she was aware of Aline’s eyes on her. 

“Thanks,” she almost whispered. “I really did look stupid, didn’t I?”

The girl pursed her lips. “No. I mean a little bit. I mean no, definitely not. You didn’t look stupid. God, I do talk a lot, huh?” She laughed. 

Aline found it almost endearing how she was the one who embarrassed herself and yet this girl was the one who wished for the ground to swallow her. “Yeah, a little bit. Don’t worry about that. I mean I thought you wanted my autograph, so I get the prize for embarrassment of the day,” she stretched out her hand. “I’m Aline.”

“I know,” the girl shrugged and smiled, then looked at the hand Aline was still holding in the air, a little too long to be comfortable. “Oh. Helen. Me. I’m Helen,” she finally shook the hand. 

“Nice to meet you, Helen. Thanks again for saving me. My friends would’ve roasted me if they saw me arrive with that thing on my face.”

“Your friend sounds great,” Helen said. “Sorry, I kind of overheard you when you were talking. I couldn’t help it.”

“Oh, it’s fine. That was my best friend, he’s actually getting married this weekend.”

“Oh, so that’s where you’re going?” 

“I’m the best woman,” Aline said proudly. “And you?”

“I’m going home.”

“You’re not from here?”

Helen closed her book. “No, I had a job interview here and now I’m going home to pack everything. I’m moving here soon.”

“So you got the job? That’s great!” Aline was getting excited, as if they were old friends and didn’t just meet under the worst circumstances. “And what is it that you do?”

“I’m a journalist,” Helen smiled sheepishly. “At least I’m trying to be one.” 

“I’m an actress,” Aline said.

“Yeah, I figured.” She pointed at the script on Aline’s lap. “There’s a new show coming?”

“I… can’t talk about it yet. Especially with journalists.”

Helen laughed. “Of course, obviously.” She slightly hit her head with her palm. “How stupid. I should’ve known.”

“No, it’s fine,” Aline touched her shoulder, but removed her hand almost immediately when Helen threw a brief glance at it. The silence between them became almost as awkward as the beginning of the conversation. They exchanged short smiles and returned to the reading. Aline was trying to concentrate on the script, but all she could pay attention to was the girl sitting next to her, reading her book and also trying her best to concentrate.

“So is your flight soon?” Aline said when the silence became impossible.

Helen shut the book close. “I’ve got about an hour. My flight got delayed because of the weather,” she pointed at the depatures board. 

“Do you mind getting some coffee?” 

“I don’t like coffee,” Helen almost whispered.

“Okay.” Aline nodded and sat back in her chair, staring at nothing in front of her. _ Today’s going to be a sequence of the most embarrassing moments of my life, huh? _

“But I do like tea.” 

When Aline looked back at her neighbor, she was almost laughing. 

“I’m sorry!” She giggled as Aline nudged her. “Come on, I spotted a cafe when I first got here. 

Although it was just as crowded as in the waiting area, Aline and Helen managed to find a table in a secluded corner of the cafe. It wasn’t the ideal place to have this sort of conversation. If it were up to Aline, she’d choose something with an atmosphere or at least something that smelled nicer. What they served here was definitely coffee and not as bad as you’d think and that was the most you could expect from the place. 

They’ got their drinks and even ordered a muffin to share, which didn’t look all that bad either. 

“Nice place,” Helen said, looking around. “Would totally come here one more time.” 

Aline scoffed. “Yeah, would be my number one place of choice. How’s the tea?” 

Helen looked inside her cup and smelled it. “Smells like tea.” 

“Good start.” Aline watched Helen take a sip. “So?”

“Tastes like tea. I think we’re fine,” she laughed. “May I?” She pointed at the muffin.

Aline moved the plate closer to Helen with a nod. Helen took a piece. 

“Safe to eat!” 

Aline laughed and took a piece as well. The muffin was warm and soft and tasted like chocolate. This place wasn’t all that bad, despite the crowd around them and the waiters moving hastily between the tables. 

“So I wanted to ask you something,” Helen started. 

“Yes?”

“Back there, when we were sitting, you kept looking at me. Is that a thing you do often?” 

“Oh,” Aline swallowed the muffin. Now Helen thought she was a creep. “No, I was trying to figure out what book you were reading,” she said. “I do that. I don’t know why. Curiosity, I guess.” 

Helen smiled. “It’s The Lost One, by Alec Lightwood. I don’t know if you’ve heard of it, it’s pretty new.” She reached for her bag and put the book on the table. “It’s about these two people who keep running into each other all the time by accident, but fail to actually get to know each other. Because of different circumstances, you know. And they keep thinking about each other all the time.” 

“You sound really excited about it,” Aline smiled. 

“It’s cheesy, I know.”

“It is,” Aline laughed. “But it’s also very romantic, isn’t it?”

Helen’s face lit up. “You’ve read it? What’s your favorite part?”

“You’re not there yet. But I promise, it’s going to blow your mind.”

“Well, I can’t wait to read it.”

Helen smiled and Aline smiled back. At that moment she thought that maybe Alec’s cheesy book was right. Two souls didn’t meet by simple accident. 

“Excuse me? Miss Penhallow?” An unfamiliar voice approached them. When she looked up, she saw one of the waiters standing at their table. 

“Yes?” Aline put on her nicest smile, which wasn’t hard because she was still thinking about her vis-à-vis. 

“I’m… I’m terribly sorry to bother you, but can I, can we… take a picture? I’m sorry,” the waiter mumbled. 

“Of course!” Aline stood up from her chair and patted him on the back. “Where’s your phone?” 

While they were trying to snap some pictures she noticed in the corner of her eye that Helen was trying to suppress her giggles. 

“Okay, now I see it,” the girl said when the waiter left with a glow on his face and Aline sat back at the table. “Do people often ask you for a picture?”

“No, not really,” Aline replied. “I’m not that famous. It happens occasionally.” She took the last piece of muffin and ate it. 

“Mhm, I should probably ask you for one too. I mean who knows, one day you’ll be a superstar and I’ll use this picture to work my way up.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

Helen giggled again.

“What?”

“You’ve got,” she pointed her finger at the corner of her mouth.

“Oh, dear,” Aline sighed. “How did I manage to get this far in my career? Is it gone?”

“No, it’s on the other side,” Helen couldn’t stop giggling.

“It’s not funny! Hey!” Aline wanted to slap her slightly on the hand, but Helen moved it away in time. “You’re not getting any pictures today!” She laughed. 

A few people around started looking at them, as if laughing was something out of the ordinary in that place. Aline noticed the disapproving looks and suggested they pay and go somewhere more fun. 

When they returned to the waiting area, it was more packed than before and their hopes to find at least one empty seat disappeared as soon as they entered the hall. That’s why they decided to make themselves comfortable on the floor by one of the walls that faced the departures board. They talked a bit about Aline’s career and Helen’s crazy life at home with numerous siblings. After a while they ran out of topics to discuss and just sat there, minding their own business, sitting close to each other. It was easier to concentrate on the script now and Helen was invested in the book. 

“Do you think it’s true?”

Aline jumped from the unexpectedness. “Huh?” 

“That two people don’t meet by accident, I mean,” Helen closed the book and looked at Aline. “What are the odds of meeting your destiny at, let’s say, an airport check in? Two people have to be extremely lucky to book a flight on the same day only to meet each other.”

“It’s pretty magical if you think about it,” Aline smiled, not looking at her neighbor. “The odds of something like this happening are so tiny and yet they still find their way to each other.” 

“Yeah, that’s just unrealistic,” Helen huffed.

Aline laughed and turned back to her. “What happened to miss I-know-it’s-cheesy-but-I-love-it?” 

“I guess real life is pretty disappointing,” Helen said. “Or maybe I’m just tired. I’ve been sitting here god knows how long.” She pointed at the board. “And now it’s delayed for another hour. I’m not getting home,” she sighed. 

“Yeah, I think you’re just tired,” Aline said. “Why don’t you have some rest? I’ll wake you up if anything changes. Promise.” 

Helen nodded with a smile and rested her head against the wall. “Thanks,” she whispered, her eyes closed. 

Soon Helen fell asleep and some time later her head was lying peacefully on Aline’s shoulder. The time of Aline’s flight, as well as Helen’s, was approaching but she decided to give her a few minutes of rest. 

_ How weird _ , she thought, _ we only met a little over an hour ago and now she’s sleeping on my shoulder like it’s something you do with strangers _. Somehow it felt right, and Aline thought about Helen’s question that she’d asked before falling asleep. She didn’t know if their meeting happened by accident or would lead anywhere, but she was sure it was the one she’d never forget. She’d never forget the embarrassment at the beginning, the smiles and laughter and this peaceful moment, when Helen was sleeping on her shoulder and her hair was soft against Aline’s cheek and smelled like strawberry. She thought about the future. They would live and work in the same city, that’s plenty of opportunities to see each other again. Yes, that’s what she’d do. When it was time she’d wake Helen up and ask for her number. She didn’t even notice when she herself fell asleep. 

The first thing she did when she woke up, was look at the displays. Helen’s flight plane was departing in less than fifteen minutes. As much as Aline wanted them to stay like this forever, she had to let go. 

“Hey,” she whispered softly in her ear. “You’re supposed to start boarding now, wake up.” 

Helen opened her eyes immediately. “Oh, did I fall asleep on your shoulder?” She was still sleepy and a little disoriented. “I’m sorry, you should’ve said that.”

“It’s okay,” Aline said. “You don’t snore so I didn’t really mind.” 

Helen scoffed. “You have someone who snores terribly?”

“Alec, my best friend. He’s awful, been snoring since our sleepovers in high school. Don’t tell him about it, though.” 

“Wait, Alec as in..?” She lifted her book and looked at Aline suggestively.

“Uhm, yeah, him. Oh dear, I’ve just ruined your favorite book, haven’t I?”

Helen laughed. “No, it’s fine. I’ll make sure to keep that in mind when I come to his next reading.”

“Oh great, I’ll be murdered soon.” 

Helen smiled. “I won’t tell your secret.” She looked at the displays. “So I guess I should be going now. Look, isn’t it your flight?” She pointed at the changing timetable. 

“It got delayed!” Aline exclaimed. “Ugh! I’m never getting to that wedding in time.” 

“I’m sorry,” Helen smiled. She hesitated for a while, not knowing what to do. “I really should go,” she gestured at the gates, where people were already moving. 

“Yeah, of course, don’t mind me!” Aline said. “Just one last thing..”

“Yeah?” Helen asked as she got up and was ready to take off. 

At this very moment Aline’s phone buzzed. _ Not the right time, Alec _, she mentally ripped his head off. “Sorry, I’ll take that real fast.” 

Helen looked at the line to the gates and nodded shortly. 

“Look, Alec, I’ll call you back, okay?” 

“Hey, weren’t you supposed to be on the plane? You said you’d call,” Alec said. Clearly he had taken the promise seriously. 

“I know, the plane got delayed. I’ll call you back in a couple of minutes.”

“Are you suddenly super busy?” 

“I’m not-“

Aline heard a gasp at the end of the line. “Is it about the romance?!” 

“Alec, shut up!”

Helen gestured at the gates and mouthed _ I should go _ as she moved there. Before Aline could make out what she was saying, Helen was already at the stand showing her boarding pass. 

“No, wait!” Aline yelled, making everyone in the waiting area look at her. 

“So you don’t want me to shut up?” Alec asked. “What’s going on?” 

“Alec, I really can’t stand you right now,” Aline sighed. “I wanted to ask a girl for her number!”

“Oh,” Alec said. “I’m sorry. I really messed it up, huh?”

Aline sat back on the floor. “It’s okay. I’m not sure it would go anywhere anyway.”

There was a small pause on the phone. “Look, all is not lost. You never know how life will go for you.”

“Yeah,” Aline said. “My flight got delayed, I’ll call you after I’ve boarded.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, Alec. I’ll call you back.” Aline hung up and looked at the displays. Her flight was in almost two hours. 

** _April_ **

“Are you nervous?”

“A little bit.” 

“I was nervous at my first movie premiere, too. I was so excited I almost blacked out.”

“Well, I hope it doesn’t happen to me. I don’t want to miss the movie.”

“You’ll do great.”

Helen was standing at the red carpet waiting for the stars to appear. It was the first movie premiere she’d ever attended as a journalist, and she was nervous. Maia, her colleague and a very close friend, was very excited about it, though. She’d talked about it every day since it got announced that she and Helen would cover the premiere of The Splintered Girl. Helen had been asking to let her go to this premiere for a while before the boss agreed but only if she went with Maia. Maia assumed she was just as excited, and she was, but for different reasons. The lead, the person everyone on the red carpet was waiting for, was none other than Aline Penhallow. Everyone was eager to meet her tonight, Helen included. However, it wasn’t as much for her incredible talent or interest in what she would be wearing today. 

When she’d woken up at the airport, almost ten minutes before her plane took off all those months ago, everything had been a bit of a mess and she hadn’t had time to exchange phone numbers. When she moved back from home she’d considered reaching out to her through her agent, but something stopped her. How did she know Aline even wanted to keep in touch? She hadn’t mentioned it back at the airport and they hadn’t even spent that much time together to begin with. Thinking Aline would want to spend more time together was way too presumptuous. Helen had decided she would move on from probably the best afternoon of the year because being hung up on someone you only knew for an hour wasn’t part of who she wanted to be. Yet here she was, standing on the red carpet, unable to resist the urge to see her again. 

“Aline’s here!” Maia almost yelled in her ear, pointing at the car that had just pulled up. 

Helen made her way through the crowd, closer to the carpet. And there she was. Aline got out of the car graciously, her movements smooth, almost as if she was performing a dance. She was wearing a simple evening gown, it’s red color matching her lips. Just like back at the airport, her hair was pulled back in a loose bun, a few strands framing her face. Helen caught herself staring. She almost got embarrassed, but realized Aline couldn’t see her because of the flashes from the cameras. 

“Come on, we’ll have to interview her,” Maia took Helen’s hand and dragged her away from the crowd.

“She looks gorgeous!” Helen said.

Maia laughed. “I know, take it easy, honey.” 

The wait was excruciatingly long. Helen watched Aline pose for the cameras and every second lasted a century, even though she definitely enjoyed the sight. Once Aline was done, she turned to them as Maia waved her hand at her. “Here!” 

This was it, the moment when they would finally meet. Without the flights or phone calls interrupting them. There were a whole bunch of other journalists wanting Aline’s attention, of course, but it was a once in a lifetime opportunity. When Aline spotted Helen, she stalled for a moment. _ She recognized me _, Helen thought. The fear of not being recognized had been close to the fear of never seeing her again on the top ten list of Helen’s fears. 

“Hi,” Aline said, approaching them with a smile. 

“Hello,” Maia shook her hand, and after Helen failed to produce a sound, nudged her. 

“I don’t happen to have food on my face, do I?” Aline laughed, and Maia was a bit confused, but mustered a polite smile. 

“Hi. Hello. Hi,” Helen said.

“Too many hi’s,” Maia whispered through her teeth so that Aline wouldn’t hear. 

“There’s no such thing!” Aline said. “Shall we begin? I don’t have much time.” 

Maia looked at Helen with expectation.

“Yeah, right,” Helen said. “So…”

“The answer is yes.” 

“But I… I didn’t ask the question yet.” Helen was mentally begging herself to pull herself together, she hadn’t been such a mess at the airport. 

“Sure you did. I do believe that two souls don’t meet by simple accident,” Aline smiled. “And you?”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Hope you liked it, see you next time!


End file.
